Words aren't enough
by Evil's Sidekick
Summary: Two people with heartbreak in common sit and watch the stars every night. As the stars gaze down at them, differences are forgotten, pain vanished and they are happy. Leah/Edward. Unusual pairing, I know. COMPLETE
1. Prologue

A/N: I'm not really sure whether I'll publish this, 'coz the idea is a bit abstract right now. This will be a bit different from my previous Twilight fanfic, 'coz I'm dealing with original characters here. Haven't you wondered, all those times you read some awesome Bella/Jasper, Bella/Emmett, Bella/Nahuel or Bella/any other damn character, what happened to Edward? This is my version. This fanfic is somewhat based on what Bella said, "I like the night. Without the dark, we'd never see the stars."

Disclaimer: I promise not to cry, but I still don't own Twilight. *Lower lip trembles.*

Moving on………..

_**PROLOGUE- Not exactly a relationship**_

_Look at the stars, look how they shine for you_

_And everything that you do_

_-Coldplay- Yellow_

The basis of their relationship was words.

They'd meet every night, under the tree near the place where the border used to exist. They both ran. She would become a silvery-grey beast and he would simply remain himself and run. They watched the stars, and they talked. They talked about everything except for the reason why they were here. And each night, for a few hours, they would be content.

Maybe deep down, they both might have known that the only place left to escape was here, where it all began.

At first, it had been a mistake. She curled his lower lip in contempt, and he ignored her. Then, they had seen each other for what they really were.

Kindred souls. Suffering from the same agony, the same overwhelming feeling of rejection that heartbreak had caused.

Slowly, they began talking. Not really about themselves. About other, trivial matters. Her brother, who amused him so much, was a popular topic. Then they'd wander off into more serious topics, books, music. Analyzing, appreciating, scorning, summarizing. And they would look at the stars, but neither would remember the times when they looked at the stars with someone else. Living in the moment was the only way they were granted peace. Because, under that tree, each night, what they both gained was peace. They would catch each other's eyes, and honey-gold would meet mercury, and they would laugh. All night long, they would talk. When the early rays of the sun shined timidly on the top of their tree, they'd nod at each other.

He'd wait patiently after she disappeared between the bushes, and when the wolf elegantly trotted out from them, he would nod at it. She would incline her head, and they would turn to opposite directions and run.

Never, not once, had they said goodbye. Nodding was the way they guaranteed that they would be there the next night too. To lessen their own pain, and to lessen the other's. It was their version of a promise, which they never phrased. They were both living proof as to how dangerous a spoken promise could be.

Later, her brother asked where she'd been.

"Around."

And thus was Leah Clearwater's and Edward Cullen's association.

A/N: So I decided to publish. Do you want this to be a one-shot, or a long fic? Please tell me. And review, even though it's short.


	2. Adapt

A/N: I normally don't take this much time to update, I just couldn't figure this fic out. It's gonna be a long and hard battle, folks. And a big thank-you to all those who reviewed and gave me feedback, else I won't be writing this right now.

Disclaimer: Nope, still don't own Twilight.

_**CHAPTER ONE- Adapt**_

_We're all as lonely as wanted to be_

_You're just you, I'm just me_

_But it's only true if we believe_

_-Jack Johnson- People watching_

"Leeeeaaaah!"

Youngsters. So cute. So adorable.

"Leeeaah!!!"

And so cute and adorable, the way they don't get the gist of short vowels. Aww…..

"Leeeeaaah!!!!"

"SHUT UP, YOU OVERGROWN RETARD!" So maybe the anger management thing isn't all that successful. But only when it comes to that brainless, perpetually happy alien I call my brother, I swear. "I'M COMING!"

I yanked on my denim trousers, the fourth in the last three months my Mum had to buy. Which was progress. Normally, I shred a trouser/shorts a day. The whole new anger management thing really worked.

"Get down here, already!" That loser was yelling. "We're gonna be late! Jake's there already!"

I snorted. "Well duh, brain damaged brother of mine. It's his creepazoid imprint."

He seemed to be thinking it over. "Yeah, you're right."

I sighed. Children nowadays. They never used their brains.

"Why the hell are you stalling so much, anyways?"

Because I'm totally tired out after spending the whole night talking with a sappy bloodsucker. Wow, that sounds disgusting. So why did I enjoy it so much?

Dress now, I thought impatiently, as I heard Seth pace around in the kitchen downstairs. Think later.

I pulled on the top Mum had picked out for me, and dabbed on some lip gloss and mascara. Hey, a girl has to have some glamour once in a while. Especially me. Glamour is pretty overdue for me, what with running around with a bunch of huge wolves-slash-boys Cupid tried target practice on.

_Are you sure it's not because he'll be there?_

I hate those voices on the back of my mind. They use really inconvenient times to pipe up. Like now, for an example. I'm in a hurry, for crap's sakes.

_Looks like someone wants to avoid the question._

Yeah, right. You wish, Creepy Voice At The Back Of Mind.

Wow, I'm really losing it.

*(*)*(*)*(*)*(*)*(*)*(*)*(*)*

"Yo, Seth. Met any cute girls lately that I might have to warn off?" I said, cheerily, as we neared the border. Yeah, you can stop staring now. So what if I'm in a good mood? Jeez, can't I take a break from the angst every now and then?

He, much to my surprise, went red. I mean, he went so red that the red was visible even on his dark skin. "Actually, there is someone……."

I raised my eyebrows. Little Sethy had a crush? Wow, the world really was changing fast. "What's her name?"

He gave me a half-suspicious look, like he wasn't completely sure of his oh-so-protective older sister. I'm hurt. "It's Hayley." He pronounced it weird, kind of breaking it up to two syllables. I blinked. I could tell a lot from just that. "Wow, bro, you really like her."

He nodded, still that unhappy red. I frowned again. "Not an imprint, right?"

"Nah." He probably wouldn't tell me even if he had, given my Imprinting is only for Pathetic Losers campaign. "Just, you know, high school stuff."

I frowned again. More flashbacks. "Take care, okay?"

The car swerved, and he cursed and regained control. "Leah just said _that_? To me?" he asked the world in general. I rolled my eyes. Younger brothers are such drama queens.

"Take care of her was what I meant." I added, just in case he got the wrong signal and thought it was bonding time. No thank you. "And no imprinting, okay?" I said as the familiar landscapes of Forks whizzed past us. Soon, the surroundings got greener, and we were near the outskirts.

The Cullen house is nothing short of imposing. I mean, I've seen it up close plenty, hat with the whole rebel-pack thing we had going on within the regime of the pathetic lovebird, Bella the 'Betrayer' with a capital B.

I clenched my fists and hoped heartily that she found out that I was the one who had started calling her spawn Nessie. I mean, what living/non-living being would name her kid Renesmee? Hadn't she heard of the concept of making fun of names? The spawn was likely to be called weird names for the rest of her life if not for my interference. So, once you really think about it, I had done her a favor.

Dammit! I had _done her a favor._

My good mood instantly evaporated. God, I hated that leech. She's such a hypocrite, you know? First, we have to treat her like she's the Second Coming, and then she takes off with another weirdo spawn as soon as her spawn reads a bit of Tennyson. I mean, geez, woman. At least you could tell that lovesucker of yours that you were going. I mean, didn't she think that he'd been through enough for her?

Vampires suck. Only rational conclusion to be drawn from this incident. They seriously, seriously suck.

"Thank God you guys came." Embry was striding across the lawn towards us. Wow, things change so quickly. I never thought there would dawn a day where Embry Call was glad to see me. "Things are getting completely out of control with Jake and Quil and Nessie and Claire. I think Edward's enjoying watching my thoughts, the evil bastard."

Seth laughed, and my heart leapt. My thoughts were running along the track of 'yay, he's here' and it was annoying. Thank God I have that mental barrier thing.

You see, when I started hanging with Edward, I found that I could block my thoughts from him when I really tried. He described it as the opposite of She Who Shall Not Be Named's talent, that my shield was manual when hers was automatic.

My manual shield was activating as the three of us strode into the Cullen household, ready to take on the Gathering of the Imprints.

"Leeaah!!!!" Claire was coming towards me via Quil. She was giggling like mad, and my 'brother' occasionally swerved and nearly hit various items of furniture on purpose. She held on to his short hair tightly. "Me and Qwil are having a tea party!"

Heaven above. "And is Jake and Ness with you?" I had my fingers crossed for a negative answer, but hope never works, and she nodded vigorously.

"Jakey made a cake with icing!" She squealed, and her noble steed piped up, "And what color was the icing, Claire-bear?"

"PINK!!!!" She screamed with her tiny lungs, and he grinned like she had found the cure for cancer. Imprinting is so gross.

_It also can break hearts pretty easy._

Never underestimate imprinting. You never know when it'll blow up in your face.

"Why don't we all adjourn to the living room to enjoy the cake our manly Alpha made?"

I stiffened. Every single one of my senses were going haywire. I knew that voice, and there was only one in the world like it. Nothing else could be that deep, and musical at the same time.

I turned around, and Edward Cullen's perfect, honey-gold eyes met mine in a secret promise.

I cleared my throat as my brothers shuffled obligingly. "Hello, Edward." My voice sounded quiet, and I closed my eyes. The sight of his utter perfection gave me sensory overload.

When I opened them, he was standing in front of me, the slight breeze catching his bronze hair. "Leah. Good to see you again."

I inhaled deeply. The sickly-sweet stench wasn't over-powering anymore. It was just pleasant. "How-how's Nessie?" I managed as we walked towards the living room. This is beyond pathetic. The guy shows up and I go weak-kneed? Shame on you, Leah.

He gave me a slightly crooked smile, and I tried to breathe evenly. "Actually, Jacob would be the best person to ask."

I nodded. "How's the music, then?"

He laughed, a uniquely beautiful sound that was extremely addictive. "It's fine. I'm planning on wrenching Nessie away from Jake long enough to teach her."

I nodded again, as we entered the living room. The imprint-ers and imprint-ees looked up briefly. "Hi guys." I said, grinning at the Spawn. The kid wasn't all bad, really.

We sat down for the tea party, and Edward's eyes met mine again, and we smiled.

We were adapting to our new lives, both of us.

A/N: Okay, this chapter really sucks, but review anyway. I normally update once a week, but I was stuck with this. Thanks for all the encouragement and support already given. So, I hope all of you are satisfied thus far, and PLEEEASE REVIEW!!!!!!!


	3. First sight

A/N: FIFTEEN REVIEWS IN TWO CHAPTERS!!!!!!!! I AM SO HIGH!!!!!!!I seriously love you guys. And luv4ed had some great feedback, which I totally agree on. For everyone's information, stalling is my thing. :D

I wanna dedicate this to my Dad's Toyota Corolla car, because if I didn't sit on it every night and pretend to talk to Edward, this fic never would be born. Also, I dedicate this to my bro, who was the one who inspired me to do what I love. Love ya, bro. :D

Disclaimer: We all need stuff that we can never hope of owning. Twilight is like that to me. :(

_**CHAPTER TWO- First sight**_

_You are everything I need to see_

_Smile and sunlight makes sunlight to me_

_-Evanescence-Angel of mine_

I leaned against the doorframe and closed my eyes.

Edward's long, perfectly-sculpted fingers caressed the keys of the piano. I've never had what you would call a really musical soul, but when this man-vampire, I mean-played, I really _felt_ it. My soul floated with the wind coming from the open windows as note after note of a composition completely foreign to me was played by someone who seemed other-worldly, like he was a gift from heaven, completing perfection.

I opened my eyes, and took in the sight of the wide open French windows, and the light that filtered in through them, and the man, bathed in the golden light that was a rarity in this district, a look of perfect peace adorning his porcelain face as he played. And his face literally sparkled, as if thousands of diamonds had been embedded in it by the sculptor to enhance pure perfection. None of it could be real. _He_ couldn't be real.

And then the moment was over, and he had finished playing. My heart cried out silently at the deprivation of the flawless beauty I had just witnessed, but I smiled anyway. He stood from his stool, and stepped sideways, his eyes unfocused, like he was still in that world of his own where he's happy.

There was a sound of quiet applause from the left corner of the room, and Alice, Edward's sister, beamed at him. She was followed by her soul mate, Jasper, the one with all the scars. It was as though the sound of her clapping banged us back to reality. He smiled slightly. "Did you have a good trip?"

I decided to sneak out before the pixie saw me, but no such luck. She whizzed towards me. "Leah! Oh, thank God you're here, I so desperately need a female to talk to!"

"That sounds positively terrifying." Edward commented, his mouth curved slightly upwards. "Jazz, you didn't do some unforgivable crime on the way that Alice can't bear to tell me, did you?"

The blond vampire shrugged. "Not that I know of."

Alice rolled her eyes. "You know that Jazz isn't exactly the best appreciator of Gucci."

My eyes widened. "I'm not, either."

My eyes met Edward's again. They were filled with laughter. He was laughing. At _me._ Somewhere in my shell-shocked mind, I was offended. The cocky bastard. "And is Edward an appreciator of Gucci?"

"No, Chanel is more his thing." Alice replied, catching on.

"Really? I was actually thinking more along the lines of, I don't know, Armani." Ha ha. Take that, Mr. Bloodsucker.

He just smiled. "Whatever you say."

I inhaled deeply. "I may be up for it, Alice." It was weird to say their real names. They had been the bloodsuckers and leeches for so long. "I just need to talk to my brother for one last time."

She rolled her eyes. "And they call us the dramatic ones."

I nodded. "Damn straight." I automatically looked at Edward for his response, and hated myself instantly for doing it. The corners of his mouth were curved upwards.

I checked on Seth, just in case he had imprinted on Claire and Quil and him were battling it out (har har) over her, and joined Alice.

"Hey, why does everyone assume that girls like me don't like hard rock?" Alice asked, totally out of the blue. I was still adjusting to the whole initial oh-God-I'm-in-a-vampire's-room shock, so it took me a while to answer. "Um, they do?"

She nodded firmly, and I frowned. Okay, so that was a stupid question. I had no idea what kind of music she liked. "So, uh, you like hard rock?"

She semi-wrinkled her nose. "I like some Goth stuff. You know, like Evanescence."

I made myself smile, because she really was trying to make me at home. At home in a vamp household. Mom would die if she knew. Well, Billy was handling the fact that his kid loved the vamp fortress, so Mom would have to deal quietly.

Somehow, I doubted it. But whatever.

"You should like Nightwish." I said, politely. "I mean, their front is a female too. They're awesome."

"Edward says that." She informed me. "But he likes all kinds of random music, so I didn't listen. Are they really good?"

I nodded, some long-forgotten enthusiasm at talking with a member of the same sex returning. "The best. And Within Temptation is pretty awe-inspiring, too. And I really like a band called The Marshall Tucker Band. You'll like them. They're southerners." I smirked.

She narrowed her eyes. "Did Edward pay you to say that?"

I snorted, proving my delicate feminity. "He didn't, believe me."

"I think he has those CD's in his room." She was frowning. "I'll go get it."

"No, I'll go." I stood up, and stretched my legs. I had already wandered out of the room when I realized that I had no idea where the mind-reaper's room was, but also found that I didn't care. Talking to Alice was fun and all, but I preferred to be alone. There's a weird sense of joy when you can feel the muscles of your legs coil and uncoil without any effort.

Yep, that's me, the girl who's only happy when she feels her legs move.

I began humming a Garbage song, and then I saw it.

His room.

It was so obvious that it was Edward's. It was right at the end of the hall, which was why I hadn't stumbled across it earlier. My eyes flew wide open in wonder, and I stopped trying to believe that I was still on Earth. It faced south, and the whole wall was like a window. I moved like someone in a dream-because I had to be dreaming- and touched the cold glass.

The view was breathtaking. It really made me forget to breathe, and I had to choke a little. The corn-blue Sol Duc River stretched across and was fringed by the vivid green of the untouched forest. The Olympian mountains rose regally like kings, and I was overwhelmed by a feeling of insignificance. Everything was so majestic, so regal……….. All the words fit to describe the scenery that I may have known melted away as I stared.

Presently, I realized that I was on a mission, and willed my body to turn. The western wall dedicated solely to CD's. I tried to stop myself from examining them. God, this room is so distracting. I padded across the thick golden carpet towards it. Just as I guessed. It was organized according to year. I brushed my fingers along them. He was versatile. Everything from Debussy and Schuman to Metallica and Kamelot to Eric Clapton and James Blunt. The genre difference wasn't illustrated, however. Maybe they were categorized according to personal preference.

My fingers rested briefly over The Marshall Tucker Band's album, A New Life, when a strange thing happened.

I turned my neck.

I mean, sounds entirely normal, right? But the weird thing was how I turned my neck at exactly that second. Now, I was looking at the well-organized desk, and saw something that looked interesting.

Since I still had the far-away feeling of a person in a dream, I felt no worries as I strode past the black leather sofa towards the desk, and picked the paper up.

The heading was Certificate of Divorce.

I blinked stupidly, and the other-worldly feeling evaporated.

"Leah?"

I whipped around. The universe hates me. "Hi, Edward."

He nodded at the certificate, which I was still holding in my hand. "I see you've seen my pride and joy."

I sighed. He sounded so bitter. His golden eyes weren't angry as he looked at me, though. They weren't even resigned. "You enjoy the view?"

I frowned, and he chuckled. "Outside."

I promptly went red. Damn it. "How long did were you here?"

"A while." His eyes had a strangely guarded expression. I shuffled awkwardly, and tried to take things into my hands. "So, I'll be going."

He nodded, with a slight smile. As I walked past him, however, he called my name again. "Leah."

I turned around slowly. His smile was crooked. "You forgot your CD."

He gave me A New Life.

I met his honey-gold eyes. "Thanks."

A/N: First of all, this chapter was called first sight 'coz it's the first time Leah really sees Edward as a man. Lame, I know. Many thanks to The Marshall Tucker Band, whom I have never heard of before I typed a Google search on A new life album 'coz I needed some symbology. :) Funny how life works. I worked really hard on this one, and researched like nobody's business, so be nice and PLEEEASE REVIEW!!!!!!! And, some thank-you's are in order.

**Heartsong:** More fluff, lol. Hope you like it, you would NOT imagine the trouble I had to go through. EDWARD IS SO HARD TO DESCRIBE!!!!!!

**kaitebug: **Hope you like this one, too. Love you.

**TuggyAngel08:** Whatever your pen name means, I think you really are an angel.

**Forgotten sunrise:** We rock the Leah/Edward world, friend. Keep up the good spirits, we're up for more!

**Dilidilzz:** My computer hates your pen name, and I love you, so win-win. :) Thanks for the review.

**rebelwilla: **There ya go. Fully legal. I don't do illegal. :)

**luv4ed:** How is it so far? I really loved your feedback, you're awesome.

**x-NudgeGirl-x: **I don't know whether you're still reading this, and I'm going with what you said and making it a story.

**Justagirl: **Try try try and one day you can fly. That's how I got here.

**Team Tyler's van: **Thankee for the reviewee. Okayee, somethingee's wrongee withee meee.


	4. A better place

A/N: Sorry, I've been a bad updater, I know. :( Since Evil only employs sidekicks who are bad in some small way, I guess this kind of behavior is to be expected.

There's gonna be a huge plot later, so I'm just getting some stuff out of the way. So, let us move on to the shortest chappie ever, in other words…….

_**CHAPTER THREE – A BETTER PLACE**_

'_Coz the day I thought I'd never get through_

_I got over you'_

_-Over You – Daughtry_

"You DO know that you look like a blue whale already, right?" I asked, swinging my chair back and eyeing my Alpha critically. "I mean, Nessie may be your forever paramour, but there's gonna be some complications when she grows up and has to introduce a guy who's wider than he is tall – who also might unexpectedly shift into an even huger wolf – as her boyfriend. That kind of stuff has a huge negative impact on a girl's life. Even on a vamp – spawn."

Jacob just stuffed more Doritos in his mouth. "Shuddup, Leah."

Ah, there it was, in all its glory. Our oh – so – intelligent Alpha's scathing, original comeback. "I think I may have to retreat to a corner to regain my self – esteem, Jakey."

Quil snorted, and Claire automatically imitated the sound. "Good one, Lee."

"Whatever." I jumped on to my feet, and stretched. "God, Jacob, this is the lamest thing you've ever come up with. You DO realize that I've wasted nearly fifteen minutes cooped up in here with you pack of retards?"

"Hey." Jake's mouth was still full of half – chewed junk food. And there was me, thinking that seeing him disembowel a deer was nauseating. I feel so worldly now that I've seen him with Doritos. "I'm Alpha of this pack, and if you don't at least try to get along when our lives aren't in mortal danger and try to co – exist, you can sure as hell get lost."

I was impressed. The man who can give speeches that long with his mouth full is a true leader indeed.

I began to walk around. Ever since Quil and Embry had joined our little League of the Rebel Wolves, a.k.a the Second Pack, a.k.a Jacob's Legacy, a.k.a The Ones For The Truth, etc etc, Jake had begun these stupid get – along sessions in his house. So we had had to hightail it here to La Push from the Cullen's place to make it on time.

Now here we were while my brain cells died away from sheer boredom. Now I think enough have died to match my IQ with Embry's. Just a few more to go for me to catch up with Seth.

O was examining a photo of Rachel, Jake's sister and Paul and marveling at how easy it would be to cast Paul as a troll in a movie when the clock chimed eight.

"YES!" Never in my life have I been more willing to go on a patrol. I actually shifted into a wolf, effectively ripping up my clothes. Damn. I liked those jeans. I got over my loss and sprinted towards the front door.

"Leah! Wait up!" Jake was well behind me, as usual.

"All that junk food ain't gonna help you catch me!" I yelled back in my mind. Ah, I love this new mental barrier. God knows I need it, what with the mind reader I hang out with every so often and the whole thing where our minds were open to each other when we were in wolf form. Now they only heard what I was thinking when I wanted them to. Unfortunately, it wasn't two – way, so I still knew when Quil was thinking about the My Little Pony T – shirt he wore to Claire's grand b'day bash (princess theme again, dammit. I pretended to have cramps that day. Jake ran off to Canada).

"Stop, 'fore I use my Controlling Voices of DoomTM on you!" He panted. "We have to go together!"

I slowed, just a bit. Enough for Jake to come within a ten – meter radius, anyways. "Where's Seth?" I asked, suddenly stopping completely. I sniffed; no scent. Just me, Jakey, Quil and Embry.

Jake slowed. "Seth?"

I growled loudly, and whipped towards Jake. "Jacob. Where. Is. My. Brother?" I snarled.

"He was with us when we left, right?" Embry had stopped. Behind him, I saw Quil's chocolate wolf thrust its nose into the air.

I let go of the firm grip I had on the ground, and began sprinting. "Seth! SETH!!"

Something deep inside me kicked in, giving me instructions: go back to the Black's place.

"Where're you going?" Jake yelled.

I didn't bother answering. I felt the ground moving fast beneath my feet. I burst through Jake's front door.

Now what?

Change back into human. Get dressed.

I ran up the stairs, still in wolf form, into Rachel's room. I changed back, and threw on a shirt and a pair of jeans, fumbling all the way. The jeans were way too short, but I couldn't have cared less.

I ran back downstairs, and outside I saw Jake's wolf looking at something. Glaring, really. I followed his line of sight, and froze.

Sam.

My mind went blank. Why was HE here? Had he come back?

I remembered all the days I'd waited for him to come back. Every time I saw him, there'd been a desperate twang at my heartstrings. In the end, the illusion had been too hard to keep up. I'd succumbed to all the despair that had been, in some way, overdue.

Six years of grief and rejection turned into poisonous anger and hate when I saw the sandy wolf standing next to him.

I didn't think. I didn't ask questions. I just strode forward and punched him in the face. "Now. What did you do to my brother?" I wiped the blood on my fist unconsciously on Rachel's jeans. Hope she won't be too mad later.

He was fixing his nose delicately. I inwardly congratulated myself. I love breaking people's noses.

At least I left their hearts alone, which is more than Sam Uley could ever say for himself.

But hey. You break my heart, I break your nose. And I'm the one who gets to see blood, so win – win.

"Leah, see? He's fine." He gestured towards my brother, who was now standing next to me. Sam's voice was thick. "I just wanted to have a chat with him."

"About what?" I asked, suspiciously.

"Uhh, about, err." He touched his nose again. "Um, about how you guys were doing and, uh, stuff."

You know what the great thing about being a girl is? Yeah, that'd be that you get to punch men and they can't bring themselves to hit you. So I took full advantage of this, and punched him again. "you mean you tried to check whether we were falling apart yet, and you thought my brother would be the easiest to wheedle it out of?" I looked at Seth. He gave a kind of nod.

I snorted. "That's just pathetic. C'mon, boys, we aren't needed here anymore."

With that, I turned on Sam.

Not hurt, not anger.

I had moved on.

A/N: Pathetically short, I know. PLEEASE REVIEW anyway. And a big thank you to all those who reviewed, and to my bro, who ACTUALLY TYPED THIS OUT FOR ME. Ha ha, bet your brothers aren't as cool as mine. :P

**Justagirl28****: ** Thank you muchly for not getting annoyed with my clichés. And yeah, I love this particular divorce, too. :)

**kaitebug****:** It was so weird, finding out that there really was an album with the exact name I wanted it to. Thanks for the review!

**Forgotten Sunrise****: **You probably have no idea how cool you are, so let me tell you: YOU'RE FANTABULOUSLY, UNGRAMMATICALLY, HOP-AROUND-LIKE-THE-ENERGIXER-BUNNY-LY COOL!!!!!!!!!! Thanks for the awesome feedback!

**LoveLife24**: Awww. You make me so happy! You really encouraged me, friend.

**luv4ed****: ** Wow, you really know how to put Eddie's character in a few words. It really helps, ya know.

**Heartsong**: I love ya, friend. You know that, right? Thanks for the review!

**rebelwilla** I agree. Wonder what was going through his head right then………..


	5. The Angel of Moonlight

A/N: Yes, me. The unspeakably awesome Evil's sidekick, who shall bestow you with magnificence that will be spoken about for years to come.

Disclaimer: Evil: What do you own related to Twilight, oh lowly sidekick of mine?

Me: Uh, four books, about a thousand posters and Leah and Edward.

Evil: WRONG! You don't own two of those.

Me: Well, I guess I can live with 998 posters…………

Evil: I mean Leah and Edward, you idiot. Jeez, why did I hire you anyways?

Me: Aw, shucks. Do I get to keep my plot?

Evil: Yeppers.

Me: YAY!!!!!!!! *rubs hands conspiratorially* Today my plot, tomorrow the world!

Evil:*fondly* that's my girl……..

_**CHAPTER FOUR- The Angel of Moonlight**_

_I wish I had an angel for one moment of love  
I wish I had your angel tonight_

_-Nightwish-Wish I had an Angel_

The moon basked everything in an ethereal, other-worldly light and he waited. He knew she was coming, the only real thing he had been confident about. Movement caught his inhumanly sharp eyes, and he relaxed.

She ran, a part of nature, fitting into it, completing it.

He watched as the wolf whose fur glistened in the moonlight gracefully made its way towards him. He watched the long legs bend and unfold in fluid movements as she steadily made her way towards him.

When she finally reached him, they stared at each other for a brief moment. The moonlight caught and enhanced the silver eyes, which were clear for a second.

Flashes of scenes. _Seth disappeared. Sam. _She had hit Sam.

She locked her mind again, and went behind the bushes. A few moments later, she presented herself in human form. "Hello."

He nodded. "How's Nightwish?"

She smiled, and looked up. Hardly any stars were visible, due to the incredible light of the full moon. "Old loves, they die hard. Old lies, they die harder." She half-sang, half-said. "Nightwish is the most beautiful thing I've ever heard."

"Beauty." He pronounced it in an experimental voice. "Is there such a thing?"

"Do you doubt it?" She grinned. "Are you about to reveal that you have no real appreciation for beauty at all? Come on."

"It's so rare." He admitted. "I've only been lucky enough to see it at a distance."

A cloud slowly passed the full moon, throwing them into the dark for a brief moment. Shadows appeared, grew longer and disappeared entirely.

"It's something bigger than you, you know." She said, softly, watching the moon. "It's unbelievably bigger, more complete than us. Perfect, you know, and just something that doesn't really matter because it's never personal." She wondered whether she made sense.

He was silent.

He thought about Sam. She had moved on. So why couldn't he do the same?

"Antagonists." She said, unexpectedly. "It's a strange word."

He looked at her, uncomprehending. "What makes you say that?"

She shrugged. "How are we to decide whether in life, we're the good guys or the bad ones? I mean, any small thing that may seem fair enough to us may affect someone else deeply. And vice versa."

This was the truth as she knew it. She knew the rule of this union, too: nothing personal. But she felt that truth was worthless unless shared.

She knew how much a single action could hurt someone.

He stared at the silver-eyed woman next to him. In the midst of the green light that rose as the effect of the pure white light from the moon meeting the unique color of the district, she looked like an Angel.

He considered what she had said. Maybe that was the secret; looking at Bella as the antagonist. He was desperate enough to try. He felt, for the first time in his painfully long and lonely life, that an action- _her_ action, of telling him, of thinking him worthy to be happy- had saved him, rescued him, rejuvenated and revitalized him, if only for a night.

She was an Angel, if only for a night.

They watched the moon till the world began their day.

A/N: Okay, another shockingly short chapter, written due to the complete lack of free time. I mean, ain't this country a democracy? I tell you, this place sucks. Too much competition for the free universities has made melancholy workaholics of us Sri Lankans. I actually feel depressed enough not to give out separate messages, so here's a big THANK YOU!!!!! to all who reviewed.

Now, go press that little button down there that says submit Feedback/review. Please?

_I do not own Nightwish, nor do I have hopes of doing so in the near future. They're just too awesome._

P.S.- If the change of PoV's is giving you whiplash, please tell me. I dope to do this whenever I describe one of their discussions.


	6. A conflict of interest

A/N: Yes, me. Are you surprised? Huh? _Huh????_

Disclaimer: Evil: What do you own related to Twilight, oh lowly sidekick of mine?

Me: Uh, four books, about a thousand posters and Leah and Edward.

Evil: WRONG! You don't own two of those.

Me: Well, I guess I can live with 998 posters…………

Evil: I mean Leah and Edward, you idiot. Jeez, why did I hire you anyways?

Me: Aw, shucks. Do I get to keep my plot?

Evil: Yeppers.

Me: YAY!!!!!!!! *rubs hands conspiringly* Today my plot, tomorrow the world!

Evil:*fondly* that's my girl……..

_**CHAPTER FIVE- A conflict of interest**_

_On this day it's so real to me, everything has come to life  
Another chance to chase a dream another chance to feel  
Chance to feel alive_

-_Alter Bridge-Metalingus_

I rubbed my eyes groggily, and moved my headphones away from my ears. And I instantly clapped my hand to my mouth.

"Mum!" I chastised after she quit staring at me creepily and walked over to my window. "You nearly gave me a………..you freaked me out, I mean."

She looked at me kindly, as if she knew what I had been about to say. I pretended I hadn't said anything at all, and sidled off my bed. My copy of Anne Rice's Merrick slid off the bed and hit the floor as my bedspread moved. I picked it up quickly and tossed it on to my desk. "Morning, Mum."

"Good morning, Leah." She turned away from the window and moved around the room, tidying up as she moved. She was the most energetic person I've ever known. "What are your plans for today?"

"Uh……" The most correct answer would be nothing. I had absolutely no plans. "I have some, um, laundry." This wasn't exactly a lie. The laundry had become a big issue since the whole yeah-I-know-I-turn-into-a-huge-wolf-when-I-want-to thing. There never seems to be any _time_, ya know?

"Good, good." She seemed distracted. "But what about college?"

I groaned. I knew it was some sort of ulterior motive that led her to come here. "Mum, I'm gonna live till God knows when. I'll have time for college after I get used to this."

She sighed. "But you shouldn't be wasting your time like this, Leah. I mean, Seth still has school, and Jake just graduated, so he won't have to worry about that yet. But you………..you haven't twitched since two years ago."

Ah, yes. Two years ago, back when I was a kind of bull's-eye for bad luck to try target practice on. Good times. "Well, I'm over that…Sam, at least. I'm just gonna stick around for a while." I said, lamely.

_Till he graduates, _that snarky voice said. _Again. So that you can go stalker bitch on him. _

Shut up, I thought. God, how many voices did I have in my head? No wonder I was such a train wreck.

"Okay, then." Mum sounded a bit assured than before. "Me and Seth are leaving, then. I'll be back at around five. Seth said he's dropping to Hayley's place after school."

I raised my eyebrows. "'kay."

She grinned. "I like her. She reminds me a lot of you when you were young."

I snorted. "My brother's dating a girl who reminds my mother of me? This I've gotta see."

She laughed, and left. "Be good."

*(*)*(*)*(*)*(*)*(*)*(*)*(*)

"She's one of those girls, nothing but trouble." I sang way more loudly than was completely necessary. "Just one look, and now you're seeing double."

So maybe Avril Lavigne wasn't really my favorite artist, but One of Those Girls was pure genius.

I was musing on this and tugging along a bucket of dirty clothes when I vaguely heard the phone ring.

"Coming!" I yelled, and bounded downstairs. I skidded towards the phone. "Hello, Leah Clearwater here."

"Lee!" A familiar musical voice went. "It's me, Nessie!"

"Hi, Ness." I said, smiling a bit. "How're you? Why aren't you in school?"

She tsked. "You're a lot like Dad. I decided to have a day off. A bunch of my friends from Forks are coming over today, and I just wanted to know whether you-and the pack- could come."

I snickered. "Whether Jake could come, you mean."

"I meant you!" You've gotta forgive her for her unsubtleness. The kid's still three, after all.

I shuddered. I'm talking teasingly about my Alpha's relationship status with a _three_-_year_-_old_.

Sometimes I wondered whether we were all escapees from a mental institution.

"So, how're you?" She attempted. "I mean, we hardly could talk yesterday."

"Yeah, 'coz one of us was obsessed with a certain shape shifter. " I said, laughing. "Tell me, what does Jacob look like these days? He always seems to be disappearing in the direction of Forks, and I can't imagine why. Does he still have black eyes?"

"Aw, come on, Lee." Her voice went low. "Do you really think he likes me?"

I laughed outright at that. "Kid, he practically lives at your place. I'm sure it's not 'coz he likes the grand piano."

"I don't know." She really sounded worried. "I mean, he's older. And Dad doesn't really like him."

"It's not Jake that Eddie doesn't like. He's just an over-protective loser." I said, seriously. "And don't worry about the age gap. Jake next to never acts like he's over five. I mean, I caught him playing with Seth's old Teddy bear a few days ago."

She laughed. "Hey, can you talk it over with Dad? I really don't want to tell him that y'all are coming over again."

I grinned at the Southern-ism. "Uncle Jazz's getting to you, huh?"

She didn't reply. I heard a clatter as the speaker on her end hit the floor. I tapped my foot lightly on the ground and hummed the chorus of Blackbird.

His voice was so unexpected that I nearly dropped the phone myself. "Hello, Leah."

I gripped the phone tightly. It freaked me out, how much his voice affected me even over the phone. I was God's example of pure pathetic-ness. "Hi, Eddie. What's this I hear about your kid becoming a party gal?"

He laughed, a low, flowing sound. "I'm beginning to wonder whether I've let her with Alice for too long."

"Gee, d'you think?" I asked, sarcastically. "Maybe we'll know for sure when they open a women's clothing store together."

He sighed dramatically. "The times are a-changing."

I snorted. "Yeah, you can slightly tell when a half-vampire kid asks you to smooth things over about a party with her fully vampire dad, so that her shape shifter soul mate can come over. Any questions?"

"So that's what this is about." He said. I heard the smile in his voice. Wow, that's new. A vampire, coming out of depression. Real headline material.

"So, are all the human invitees three?" I asked, grinning. "I'd feel out of place."

"While your Alpha will find where he belongs." He added, jokingly. "No, the invitees are fifteen."

"Fifteen?" I pretended to choke. "I'll have to work hard. Any boys?"

"Yeah, a few." He sounded cautious.

I bit on a nail thoughtfully. "Jake's not gonna like that."

"A bit of competition won't hurt him." He didn't sound like he would have liked Jake not to go through the trouble at all. "He's becoming too cocky."

"You sound like my Mum." I said, disgusted. "She raised two wolves."

He began laughing. After a while, I joined him.

"Come early." He said, suddenly.

I gulped. There was a note in his voice that was dangerously hard to resist. "Uh, alright."

"See you then."

"Yeah. Bye, Eddie."

I hung up and wondered why the world was changing so fast.

*(*)*(*)*(*)*(*)*(*)*(*)*(*)*(*)*(*)*(*)

"I couldn't sleep I had to listen, to a conscience knowing so well." Jake seemed to think that he was singing. I checked the rear-view mirror, to see whether Seth had cut a quick escape through the windows. Nope, he was still there. He probably was paralyzed into immobility. "That nothing comes from indifference, I look inside of-"

"DAMMIT JACOB YOU CAN'T RUN PATROLS WHEN HALF YOUR PACK IS DEAF!!!!!!!!!!"

"Come on, Leah." He actually stopped singing. I uttered a quick prayer of thanks. I believe, I believe. "That song is classic. I mean, you, of all people, should appreciate a solid Alter Bridge number."

I breathed deeply to calm myself. "Jake, you're a nice enough guy. Sure, I wanna murder you on a daily basis, but 'nuff said. You see, there's a horrible truth in life, and that's that some people can sing, and others can't. Myles Kennedy can sing. You can't. Simple as that."

"Go sis." Seth said, weakly. His voice sounded a bit muffled, like he had a nosebleed.

Jake seemed miffed. "Here we are." He pulled over.

We jumped out of the Rabbit. "Good job, Bunny." I patted the car. Jake normally gets pissed no end when I call his car that, but now he just floated over into the Vampy household with a love struck expression on his face. I rolled my eyes.

"LEAH!!!!!" Yelled the Spawn of The Woman Who Should Be Eaten Up By Godzilla. "How are you?"

"Same old, same old." I said, watching as she tried to ignore Jacob. "How's everyone else I saw yesterday and the day before and the day before that?"

"They're fine." She was too busy pretending like she just saw Jake to actually pay attention to what I said. "Oh, hi, Jacob."

I felt pretty happy with all the going-on's. "D'you know that cute girl who lives near Jake's place? I nearly invited her, 'coz she's so nice, but I guessed that I should probably ask you guys first. I bet Jake wouldn't have minded."

Seth appeared to be choking. "Dry…throat." He gasped.

Nessie was talking with Jake. "So, what's your neighbor's name?"

"What neigh- oh." They walked off, Jake describing the numerous charms of the fictional Cindy.

I laughed.

"Now that," a voice said, in amused tones, behind me, "is almost evil."

I tensed. I could feel my nails digging into my palms.

"Am I supposed to be glad that you kept him away from my daughter, if only temporarily, or should I be angry because you made her feel jealous?" The musical voice continued. The pitch was low, and my spine tingled in response.

He finally walked into my line of sight. The sun caught his bronze hair, making it glow like a sort of halo.

He was too beautiful. My instincts were screaming at me to run, to run and never look back. It was his beauty that terrified me. Yet this was also the place I most wanted to be.

I grinned. Going against my instincts was what I did best. "A conflict of interest, I think that's called."

**A/N:** Yeah, so it's decent. Thanks so much for all the positive reviews to that last crappy chapter. Sorry I couldn't update, I had house play practices. PLEEASE REVIEW!!!!!!!!!


	7. Old wounds

A/N: it was surprising how many of you liked that suckfest I call chapter five, the reviews made me feel better about it. luv4ed? This chapter is for you, man. You rock.

Disclaimer: Evil: What do you own related to Twilight, oh lowly sidekick of mine?

Me: Uh, four books, about a thousand posters and Leah and Edward.

Evil: WRONG! You don't own two of those.

Me: Well, I guess I can live with 998 posters…………

Evil: I mean Leah and Edward, you idiot. Jeez, why did I hire you anyways?

Me: Aw, shucks. Do I get to keep my plot?

Evil: Yeppers.

Me: YAY!!!!!!!! *rubs hands conspiringly* Today my plot, tomorrow the world!

Evil:*fondly* that's my girl……..

_**CHAPTER SIX- Old wounds**_

_Nothing will be forever gone  
Memories will stay and find their way  
What goes around will come around  
Don't deny your fears  
So let them go and fade into light  
Give up the fight here_

_-Epica-Chasing the dragon_

I was still seething as I stared at my barely-present nails.

There, you see, are levels of stupid. There's sort of stupid, and there's kind of really stupid, and there's oh-my-God-if-i-really-am-that-stupid-now-would-be-a-good-time-to-die stupid. Right now, I officially qualify into that last level. And I wasn't exactly throwing a party to celebrate the occasion.

Back when I was still messed up about Sam, Seth had said something that made me laugh quite a lot, in what I realize now was a bitter, sarcastic kind of way.

He told me that being so angry the whole time could hurt me.

I mean, I know he meant well and was like sixteen at the time, but _excuse_ _me_?

He made it sound like I was angry on purpose! Like I had woken up one day and had been all, "Hmmm, how worthless all this bliss and contentment is, I'll just be a bitch who's messed up all the time and is hated by everybody."

Anger and hatred aren't like that. You don't have different layers of it, or different ways of being mad. It's this thing that gnaws at you, and refuses to let go. Not that I ever wanted to let go of the anger. Sometimes, pain is the only thing that reminds me that I'm alive.

That was exactly what I felt at myself at this point: anger, my old friend.

You see, I was always the girl who had mounds of self-control. Which was why when I realized that I had talked to _Edward Cullen,_ I freaked but didn't put up a show.

I mean, how could I have done that? The mere thought nearly makes me throw up. I mean, _urgh_. He's a bloodsucker, for cryin' out loud! He actually depends on Death to exist. If that's not cliché enough to make you warn your loved ones off him, I don't know what is. And d'you know what really creeped me out? I had been nice to him.

Me, Leah Clearwater, well-known leech-hater.

Plus there was that loserly love-sucker thing. I mean, of all people to consider self-destruction over, _Bella_ _Swan_? If that bitch can stand on her own feet for over ten seconds, I swear to God I'll give up all my CD's. It's supposed to be endearing or whatever. I guess I can believe that. Most males would do anything to have a partner who makes them feel proud of themselves. Which is why they're all going to hell. But of course, they all love Bella Swan because her mother never showed her how to stand on her feet for two seconds straight. Pathetic, I call it.

Well, they all learned their lesson. Jake, who really isn't that much bothered because he has her spawn, and Eddie, and the rest of the Cullens, they all learned how very twisted the whole thing was when she just dumped Eddie and took off with Nahuel. Three years of married bliss seemed quite enough for her, so she just left her family to get Volturi-fied for all she cared.

Anyway, 'nuff with the I Hate Bella Swan-Cullen 'coz she's a Hypocrite rant. Now the only one I'm really mad with is myself.

I hate all leeches. That's a given. So I probably only talked to him because of that goddamned voice of his.

All vamps have inhuman voices, but his was terrifying. I actually couldn't ignore his voice, no matter how hard I try. His voice is unimaginably perfect: deep, flowing, irresistible. The kind of voice you want to hear first thing in the morning, the kind of voice that makes you feel _alive_.

I looked up to glare at the owner of the said voice. He was sitting at the piano, his long ivory fingers caressing the keys soundlessly. The expression on his face was preoccupied, and there was a slight curve about his mouth, like he was imagining something that was not exactly funny, but pure, the kind of thing that makes you feel elated and the worlds seem brighter.

I jumped to my feet, not wanting these thoughts. All I needed right now was a quiet corner to brood. Listening to Cullen's music never got me in the mood to be homicidally mad.

I was striding towards the door for dear life when he began playing. I nearly growled when my body automatically responded to his music, and I froze.

Sometimes, I imagine scenes when I hear instrumentals. Not when I listen to songs, but just music. This happened right now to me. I closed my eyes as I listened.

He was deliberately making the music sound like a small stream. A soft melody, complex but simple at the same time. I could see, in my mind's eye, where the stream turned, where it was clear and where the grass of the banks touched the surface. The sun was reflected, and beneath it, smooth rocks glistened as tiny fish darted here and there.

I sighed. It was beautiful.

There was a hint of expectation now, which he had built up gradually. There was someone, a presence. The grass of the banks was a shocking green, vivid and healthy.

On the grass stood an Angel, unfolding his great white wings slowly. His bronze hairshined dazzlingly in the sunlight.

My eyes were wide open now. I whipped towards him, and he stopped playing when he saw my expression. "How- how did you do that?" I hissed, my nails digging into my palms.

"Do what?"

"That." I spat, anger taking hold of me again. "You saw him too."

He looked directly into my eyes, his amber eyes scorching. "Who was that?"

"How am I supposed to know?" I demanded, with a groan. "You know what? Shucks to you."

That was all. I just turned around and left.

This time, he didn't play his charm, either.

*(*)*(*)*(*)*(*)*(*)**(*)

My life is…..weird.

Yeah, weird should be enough to start off with. From weird, my life goes on to being cataclysmically terrible.

Cataclysmically terrible. Yeah, I like that, though I'm not entirely sure what it means.

I decided to change into wolf form. Running around as a wolf has a lot of advantages, and forgetting everything except for the basic primal instincts was one of them.

Not to mention being able to scare the crap out of innocent bystanders when I develop a sudden interest in the newspapers while in wolf form, but Jake never lets us do that anymore. I swear, ever since the Dawn of The Spawn, he's taking responsibility seriously. Gone were the days of mucking around with motorbikes. Besides, I know for a fact that motorbikes remind him of someone we all wanna forget.

Anyways, I was running along, enjoying the slight whistle of the wind. Running always gives me this exhilarating sense of power, like I could get anywhere I wanted, like I could control the ground below me. Soon enough, my exasperation died away in the sheer ecstasy of moving so fast.

Not for long, though. I swear, there's probably some law that says that giving Leah Clearwater some peace was illegal.

I heard Jared.

Which was extremely weird, since I'm not even in their pack anymore. But Jared's slightly husky voice sounded in my head clearly enough. "Emergency!" he yelled. "Anyone?"

I caught a glimpse of his thoughts. _Bloodsuckers. _ _Bloodsuckers are coming here._

Without thinking, I changed direction and began powering towards La Push. "Are they close?" I aimed my thoughts at Jared.

"Leah?" he sounded incredulous.

"Yeah, me. Get over it and answer the question!" I snarled.

"'Round fifteen minutes distance from here in their speed. They're in a hurry." He replied. "Is Jake with you?"

Jake! I suddenly froze and began retracing my steps. "I'm getting him, you get the others!" I yelled.

When you run as fast as I was running now, you don't have to think. You just focus on everything up front and down below. I didn't even think about the unexpected visitors as I neared the Cullen household. I just opened my barrier and screamed mentally. "Jacob, Seth, Cullen, anybody who can hear me, I have an emergency and I need Jacob!"

Jake came out the door just as I reached it. "What's up? Edward said….." He began, confused. I began tugging at his clothes (no R-rated mental image intended) and he burst into wolf form. "What….?"

I quickly showed him what Jared had seen.

"In which case, I'm coming with you." A quiet voice said behind me. I recognized his voice at once, of course.

I barked. "It's your kind out there, and if things get ugly,-"

"-It'll be even better that you have me with you." He interrupted, stubbornly.

Jake was mulling this over. "He's right. He knows his own kind better than us. Plus, that mind-reading thing might come in handy."

I growled. "But-"

"No but's, Clearwater." Jacob said in his I'm-a-good-leader voice. "He's coming with us. If you have a problem, well, too bad."

I nodded unwillingly. At least he wasn't doing his Alpha voice. If it were Sam, he'd have to use the Voice™ left, right and center to get anything done. Jacob really was a true leader.

"Nice." He commented, and I realized that my barrier was still down. "Never got a compliment out of you before, Clearwater."

"You know I think you're an awesome Alpha." I mumbled. "Now, chick-flick moments aside, we really have to leave. Think you can keep up, Cullen?"

"I don't think outrunning puppies can be much of a challenge." His voice was exquisitely amused.

I managed to be pissed about that, even though the way he said it was beautiful. It all came back to that annoyingly perfect voice.

We set off, and I was shocked to find that Cullen was fast. Great. He _had_ to be good at that, too, didn't he? We ran at roughly at the same speed, and Jake ran off to our place to pick up the rest of the pack. I could feel pure joy radiating off Edward, and I recognized someone who loved this form of transport as much as I did. I stretched my legs to their full length, and put on an extra boost on my speed.

It was ridiculous, really. Here we were, running towards a grave, possibly deadly encounter but we were blissfully happy on our way. We were almost laughing.

We saw a gathering just near the border. Wolves, and humans. No, wait, not humans. Maybe vampires. Cullen and I exchanged a look, and he nodded. Yep, vamps.

We reached the group. The vampires stood out from the rest. There were three of them, two of them strikingly dark. Both the dark vampires looked vaguely familiar.

But when I met eyes with the fair one, my heart stopped.

The next few seconds were in slow motion. I heard the sharp intake of breath from the vampire next to me. Through my mind's eye, I imagined his expression. Flawless agony.

I knew what Jake would feel. Bewildered pain.

Re-awakened pain.

I leapt forward, in a position of shielding everyone from the newcomers. I knew how much they could and had hurt everyone I loved. A low growl escaped my throat.

The fair one looked at me. "Leah?"

I bared my teeth. She knew already, anyway.

"Well, I'm back." Said Bella Swan.

**A/N: **Well, I'm back.If you saw this coming, well,you're luckier than I am, 'coz I sure didn't. I just go where my stories take me.

It's nice to be writing after all this time. I had a severe, major, oh-my-God-i-wanna-die kind of bout of writer's block. By the way, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR ALL THE REVIEWS!!!!!!!!!! They really gave me incentive to come back.

See you. Until then, remember that no-one's as abstract as Evil's sidekick.

PLEEEASE REVIEW!!!!!!!!


	8. A breach

A/N: I've gotten over my Angels phase, so let's get this party started, say I.

_**CHAPTER SEVEN- **_**A breach**

_But I'll never let you go__  
__If you promised not to fade away__  
__Never fade away_

_-Muse -Starlight_

The wind tossed her shoulder-length hair in violent motions as she stood with her arms folded. The leaves of the tree fell around them, but neither noticed.

"So you're going back?"

His topaz eyes were unreadable as they met hers. His tense shoulders did not flinch when a particularly violent gust hit his back.

"Is that a problem?"

Her silver eyes flashed angrily, and she looked away. Nature had opted to be turbulent, possibly reflecting her own emotions. The moon or the stars could be hardly seen because of the rainclouds, stifling and bringing an omen of dark dreams.

"No, if you choose to have amnesia just when she's around."

He laughed bitterly. "Hardly."

When he didn't elaborate, she looked back at him. He was watching her in turn. His pale skin almost glowed, enabling her to read his expression of misery.

"Forever." She whispered. "So many people mean so many different things."

"It's inconsistent." He spat out. He leaned against the bark, his arms folded. "When your definition of forever varies from someone else's, a relationship seems to be out of the question."

"So we have to find someone who means the same thing by forever." She stated. "But then again, loyalty and deceit aren't a good combination for any duration."

"So we have to make the right decision the first time or risk an eternity of agony." A corner of his mouth went up in an unamused smile.

"It's unfair, but looks like we'll have to get used to it." She looked around, and the wind whipped her hair East. "'Least we're not the only ones. And I suppose we can learn over time."

He nodded, and a sudden flash of understanding flashed across his golden eyes.

His voice was hoarse as he whispered her name.

"Leah……."

A moment………

He leaned towards her, and captured her warm lips with his own cold ones. She shivered, but he had already drawn away.

Their time was over, and the barrier was between them again, leaving them wiser, if not happier.

When the sun rose, their story died with the last sparkling rays of starlight.

All stories must come to an end, and maybe, when millions of stars illuminate the black sky and the clouds are gone, theirs would begin again. All that mattered was the peace after the cages were gone-after the web of stifling, dense black clouds had parted and afforded a view of what was beyond………….

The stars.

**A/N: **You know what sucks? Exams. And I've been having a lot of the lately. Lame excuse, but it's better than nothing. Review if it rocks. If it doesn't, feel free to review anyway. :)


	9. Second best

**A/N: **Okay, so I _might _have made a few changes in the last chappie, which, thanks to my being half-drunk the day I uploaded it, sucked in many different levels. If you can't be bothered checking out the changes, it basically says that Edward whispers Leah's name before he kisses her. This chappie is special, 'coz the guy to whom I dedicated this to, namely my bro, turned 21 a few weeks back. Love ya, bro.

**Disclaimer:** Me: Yaaay!!!!!! I own Edward!!!!!!!!!!

Edward:*turns on velvet voice* Don't think so, love.

Me: *goes starry eyed* did you just call me _love?_ *faints*

Edward: *chuckles evilly*

_**CHAPTER EIGHT- Second best**_

_Comparisons are easily done__  
__Once you've had a taste of perfection__  
__Like an apple hanging from a tree__  
__I picked the ripest one__  
__I still got the seed_

_-Katy Perry -Thinking of you_

"Leeeeaaaaah!!!!!!!"

An odd feeling of déjà vu crept over me when the first thing I heard this morning was Seth's shrill voice screaming my name.

"IF YOU WANNA GET A RIDE OFF ME, YOU'D BETTER GET YOUR BUTT OUTTA THE BED RIGHT NOW!!!!!!"

Who knew that little brothers could get PMS-y?

I decided not to ask, and dragged myself out of my messy bed instead. My legs felt like lead, and I was sure I looked like crap. The lack of sleep was getting to me, time-hardened she-wolf that I am. I glanced uninterestedly at my mirror. Yep, suspicion confirmed: I _did _look like crap. I attempted patting down my hair, which was, of course, a losing battle. I cursed the whole of shape shifter-kind as I stumbled into the bathtub. Sure, at first, it was cool, but this whole supernatural lifestyle I could deal being without.

The water of the tub splashed over the edge as I swirled circles with my fingers. I touched some solitary drops on my skin, but the feeling that this was all just a bad dream didn't waver. Even as I raised myself out of the water and dried myself, I couldn't accept that this was reality.

How could it be? I mean, my life was never perfect, but the last few months hadn't sucked as badly as they could have. Hell, they had been great. I'd had fun, I'd come the closest I'd ever come to being a happy, normal person.

Shows how much the mere presence of one person could change another's whole life.

I mean, it's not as if Bella did anything to me. It was just her existence that was messing with me.

It was annoying, and worst of all, it made me feel totally insignificant.

"Who's Mum talking to?" I asked Seth after I heard the sound of Mum's laughter came through the windows as I poured cereal into a bowl.

"No one. The new guy." He said, contradicting himself. He seemed pretty impatient to go. "Come on, hurry up."

"Alright, already. I grumbled. We both left the house, slamming the door behind us. I caught a glimpse of a tall figure talking to my mother before I got in the car. I really needed some supplies, seeing how I was stuck alone at home. Seth had promised to drop me off in town.

"Leah?" Seth's voice was quiet after we'd both scrambled into his car. "Leah, what happened yesterday?"

My expression turned blank. "Where were you?"

He shook his head. "You don't remember Mum telling us to come over to Charlie's place after coming back from the Cullen's house?"

I was confused. "She said that? When?"

He gestured impatiently as he revved the engine and set off. "Never mind. Just tell me what happened." His voice went even lower. "Is it true? Did she really come back?"

I crossed my arms. "Sure did." I stared out of the window. The drizzle made it hard to see outside, but I wasn't paying attention anyway. "She says that there's this creepy-ass hunter after them. Not a tracker, or a twisted vamp, but a scary _hunter_." My voice dripped with sarcasm. "According to her, he or she is hunting down half-breeds like her precious love Spawn."

Seth looked confused. "Ness?"

I snorted. Must be nice to live in Seth's little world, I thought for the millionth time. Everything seems to be as they should be over there. "No, you dumb nut. Nahuel."

Actually, I felt sorry for that stupid dork. Nahuel, I mean, not Seth. He seems to think that Bella wouldn't just squash him underfoot like she has done to so many others around here.

Take it from someone who knows, Nahuel, my man; Bella Swan was major bad news.

"Oh." He turned to the parking lot of the CD store. "So, what did Jake say? What did Edward say?"

I shrugged. "They both basically welcomed her back with open arms."

He caught my tone, and gave me a warning look as I opened my door. "Leah, don't try to pick a fight with Jake.'

"You think he did the right thing?" I asked, incredulously.

"At that time, maybe he didn't have a choice, you know?" He got that weary, mature look that hadn't been there before he had the added burden of being a shape shifter.

I shrugged just to get him off my back. "Whatever. See you later."

With that, I scrambled out of the car and slammed the door before he could yell out a cliché at me.

*(*)*(*)*(*)*(*)*(*)

"Big Disturbed fan?"

I looked up, startled, from the Disturbed CD I was holding to meet a pair of impossibly blue eyes. "Excuse me?"

It was a guy, around my age. Really hot, too. I mean, I don't normally like many guys, but this one was……….handsome. Without being too pretty.

"I was asking whether you were a Disturbed fan." He said, his eyes twinkling. "Because you've been staring at that album for like fifteen minutes."

I was taken aback. "Whoa, the whole stalker vibe doesn't make it too likely that I'll answer your question."

Even as I said it, I kind of knew he wasn't that weird. But you never know, and it never, ever hurt to be careful.

The doubt evaporated even more when he laughed. It was a nice laugh. Friendly, and warm. "Yeah, sorry about that. Slight personality malfunction. The thing is, you looked familiar. Do I know you from somewhere, by any chance?"

I raised my eyebrows. "Like that excuse is gonna work, _stalker_." But I was grinning when I said it, so he didn't take it too seriously. "No, I don't think I've seen you anywhere before."

"My, my, aren't we paranoid." He shook his head, smiling. He stuck out a hand. "Introduce yourself first, ask questions later. My name's Dante."

I shook his hand. "Leah."

His brow furrowed. "Clearwater?"

I nodded, surprised. "Did I just win the lottery?"

He laughed, and shook his head. "Better. Your mum told me about you. Guess I'm your new neighbor." He shook his head in disbelief. "Now that's what I call coincidence."

"That's what we here in the rez call living in a tiny town." I informed him. "Around here, coincidence is run down by pure fact."

A corner of his mouth went up. "So, there are a lot of intimidating and huge guys around here for such a small town, I noticed."

I knew it! I _knew_ there was something wrong with this guy. If the boys scare him, no way in hell was he straight. "So you swing that way?"

He laughed exasperatedly. "No, Leah. I'm straight, but I admit that the huge eighteen-year-old that threatened me not to even dare to look at this toddler this morning was just a bit scary. Considering the fact that the toddler was, to the true meaning of the word, a four-year-old."

I laughed. Wow, this guy managed to make me laugh more than I've laughed the whole past week within ten minutes. "That was probably Quil. He's, uh, kind of protective."

"Of kids?"

"Of one kid in particular." I said, even though I would have liked to make Quil sound like a total freak to the new guy. "Claire. Claire's special to all of us in La Push."

"Reservation mascot?"

I laughed again, and was annoyed. Who was I, a ditzy twelve-year-old girl at a Jonas Brothers concert? Because I sure was acting like one.

_But when you laugh, it's easier to forget._

I bit my lip, and Dante noticed. "Anything wrong?"

No need to let the cute, funny guy know my abrupt mood swings. "Uh, it's nothing." I lied.

He seemed to notice that I wasn't being truthful. "Oh, come on. I thought we were over the I-think-you're-a-stalker phase."

"I just realized that I'll have to walk home in the rain." I made up quickly. "But it's not that huge a deal. I'm used to the rain."

"But is that a reason to turn down a lift from your neighbor, who just might be a stalker?" His eyes were twinkling like crazy.

"Do you want me to come, or not?" I asked, half-laughing.

He shrugged. "Just letting you know where you stood."

"I'm coming." I decided. What was the worst thing that could happen? I could turn into a wolf, for crying out loud. That should at least have the perk of letting me chill when a stranger offered a ride home. Besides, Dante wasn't a stranger. Not exactly.

_But he's Dante. Not him._

**A/N: Me:** Pleeease review, even though Edward didn't put up an appearance today. *Pouts*

**Dante:** *looks around wildly* who's Edward???????

**Edward: ***looks disgusted* you may be in this chapter, but did you honestly think that you're the hero in this fic?

**Me:** *Clears throat* uh, he IS kinda hot.

**Edward: ***looks hot*

**Me: ***feels like a ditzy twelve year old at a Jonas Brothers concert* okay, you win. You're the hottest f them all. *faints when Edward winks*

**Edward and Dante: **That got rid of her. Whew.


	10. WTF?

**A/N: **Everyone seemed to expect a Leah-Dante bonding session like the Bella-Jake one, but guess what? You ain't getting one. This is Evil's Sidekick Land, not Stephanie Meyer-ville.

**Disclaimer: **At last. I own Dante. That's it, folks.

_**CHAPTER WHO CARES? We're all gonna die anyways, might as well enjoy the ride**_

_So look at me now__  
__I'm just makin' my play__  
__Don't try to push your luck, just get out of my way_

-_AC/DC-Back in Black_  
The roaring in my head as I woke up the next morning reminded me why I had given up drinking when I'd first turned into a wolf. Hazy memories of the night before crept up to me slowly.

Bar……..vodka………..Dante………..scotch………..Dante………..more vodka………..shots……..laughter…………Dante.

_Dante_.

I quickly scrambled up, and sensed someone lying next to me on this completely strange bed.

You see, there are some things no one likes on mornings, and they were a)Not knowing where the hell they were, b) Having a killer headache and undisputable signs of a first-class hangover when they were pretty sure they hadn't gone overboard the night before, and c) waking up next to their neighbor.

Since all three were happening to me at once, I decided that the days of being Leah Clearwater, the graceful, in-control chick were over, and screamed for my lung's worth.

Dante's dark eyelashes fluttered, and two reproachful, Cornish-blue eyes fixed on me. "Wherezdafire?"

I grabbed a pillow, and flew at him with it. "I'M GONNA MURDER YOU!!!!!!"

His voice sounded muffled as he protested, "Leah……..need to…….can explain………can't breathe…….."

I pressed my pillow harder on him, fully intent on smothering him to death. "Why am I on your bed with a hangover, huh? I'M GONNA STRANGLE YOU, DANTE!!!!!!!"

He somehow managed to overthrow me. "Nothing happened, Lee. See? Fully clothed." He gestured, and I looked down at myself. Hey, what do you know? He was right. I even had my shoes.

I looked up, and bit my lip. "So what happened yesterday?"

He ruffled his already messy hair. "We were drunk. Really drunk." He frowned, then grimaced. "Ow."

Now that he mentioned it……..

"Where's the bathroom?" I asked, jumping off the bed in a motion that made my stomach and head feel even more awful. He pointed, and I ran.

I barely made it.

After I had thrown up, my headache just got worse. I looked at the mirror nervously after I'd rinsed my mouth, and winced.

I looked like I had been caught in a hurricane, or struck by lightning, or something. I wasn't exactly J-Lo, but I didn't want to look like a walking disaster in front of my gorgeous neighbor, either.

Figuring that whatever damage was already done, I walked back to the bedroom slowly. "How did we end up getting so drunk, anyways?" I asked Dante, whose dark, tousled hair was visible peeking out from under the covers. "I don't remember going to a bar in the first place."

He opened his eyes again blearily, and rubbed his temple. "I think……….you were saying something about nights going to be harder to get through, or something. I guess one thing led to another, and next thing I know, you're screaming bloody murder and trying to smother me with a pillow."

I nodded slowly, and sat on the bed next to him. "I'm guessing my mum's not going to be thrilled about this."

He grinned, and sat up. His movements were controlled, like he was afraid if he moved too fast, he would end up hugging the toilet seat, as well. I guess I understood the feeling. "So maybe the tall, handsome man from next door wasn't as much for a fix for her reclusive daughter as much as she expected."

I would have groaned if I wasn't so sure it would just increase my headache. "Aw, shucks. She hinted yesterday, didn't she?"

He nodded, a little-boy smile on his features. "Apparently, you're still a bit broken up about a boy called Sam."

I coughed. "_Sam_? Sam was so last year."

He shook his head. "Maybe."

I scowled. "Dante, I mean it. I'm way over Sam Uley." I looked out his window. The sun hadn't completely risen, so the hints of dark blue still lingered between the golds and reds.

_Were you there?_

_Did you wait for me?_

I shook my head briefly, in acceptance. Of course not.

Dante was watching e with a curious smile. "But that doesn't mean there isn't someone else, does it, Lee?"

_You never said my name. Just that once._

"Does it matter?" I asked, with a fake laugh. "As far as I'm concerned, everyone can just die and go to hell or wherever. I'm having my share of fun."

"Determination personified." Dante commented, and yelled indignantly when I flew at him with a pillow again.

_Everybody's changing and I don't feel the same.*_

**A/N:** This chapter was mainly based on a lot of episodes of Gossip Girl, which I am addicted to. This was the main conversation:

**Blair: **Where are you?  
**Georgina: ** Taking care of what you obviously couldn't.  
**Blair:** I don't think Jesus would approve of that.  
**Georgina:** Well, you can tell Jesus that the bitch is back.

Oh, and photos the guy I have in mind for Dante are on my profile. Feel free to check them out. Kudos to anyone who can guess who it is. **Hint:** Any Gossip Girl or The Covenant fan is bound to know him.

He's my man, Dante is. So maybe you'll review just for his sake.

*Quoted directly from Everybody's changing by Keane.


	11. The diminished flame

**A/N: Thank you to all who reviewed.**

Based on The Musings of a Juvenile Delinquent by my brother.

_**CHAPTER ELEVEN- The diminished flame**_

_Goodbye, my almost lover__  
__Goodbye, my hopeless dream__  
__I'm trying not to think about you__  
__Can't you just let me be?__  
__So long, my luckless romance__  
__My back is turned on you__  
__I should've known you'd bring me heartache__  
__Almost lovers always do_

_-A fine frenzy-Almost Lover_

Hope. How it breaks us all.

How it shatters us to so many pieces we can't ever hope of counting, let alone piecing back together. Shards of ourselves, and we can only stare at them from within the abyss of agony that we cannot ever climb out of.

A lone man throws his head back from the sheer ecstasy of the soul-shredding feeling of incompleteness, and the crescent moon stares on in empathy.

"_James Blunt?" Her voice is shrill with disbelief. "You're meaning to tell me that you expect me, Nightwish-worshipper of the millennium, to listen to some guy with a frickin' _falsetto_?"_

_He grins like a Cheshire cat, so dazzlingly that the moon hides behind a cloud, knowing that the need of light was no longer felt. "Case in point, yeah."_

_She flips the CD case around to check the list of tracks, but he knows she's really trying to hide her smile."Hmm."_

"_There's a song called Tears and Rain." He whispers, and she looks up, startled by his close proximity, and licks her lips and he nearly groans out loud imagining what they'll taste like, what it would be like to see those huge, silvery, elusive eyes when he straddles her and claims her for his own. He clenches his fists in a desperate effort to control himself, but the images keep raging in his mind._

_She steps ever so slightly away from him, a gentle smile on the lips he fantasizes about each moment of his existence."As long as it's not Zac Efron, I suppose I'm game."_

_He smiles like an idiot because he can't help being content in her presence. _

If the Moon Goddess had been complete, if she had not been obscured by the ugly, curling hands of the grey clouds, she would have shed some light on the unusual hair of the dreamer, setting it afire in a flash of bronze, yet she can only watch silently at the vision of perfection. He is like the conception of an angel in grief by a sculptor of old, the painted portrait of a Byronic charmer.

It was nothing but hope that had led him here, each night, to dare to dream under the stars. It was nothing but hope that had broken him today, broken him again, and would keep breaking him evermore.

He had been born to suffer. He had died to suffer more.

Suffer, because there is nothing that quite compares to the exquisite anticipation of hope that lingers with us even after the greatest downfall, gives our actions a certain degree of meaning. Now………………

He was beyond that fine line that hope could help. He was truly without that spark of hope that had been alighted when he was born, rekindled when he met Bella Swan and had developed into a raging fire when he had fallen in love with Leah Clearwater.

And he knew that once a fire takes hold, it burns everything it can, and eventually, consumes itself.

He just wishes that he hadn't hoped that this particular fire would pass away, all so long ago. It was so tiring to hear that tortured spirit of his weep like a little boy, crying out in pain.

"_I wish life could work out the way they do in movies." She sighs, and he looks at her with half-concealed concern."That the hero would only see the heroine and all the girls around her just fade away into an inconsequential, J-Lo's- comforting-best-friend type of background."_

"_And I suppose the antagonists will squint and speak in thick, unintelligible accents." He suggests, a slow smile curving his lips._

"_And wear sunglasses." She says, decidedly. "Preferably matched with bald heads and Hugo Boss suits."_

"_And perpetually talk through a microscopic Bluetooth." _

_She nods, satisfied with the mental image of an unspeakably evil, rich antagonist. "And his name will be Al."_

_He salutes. "Death to Al."_

_They break out laughing._

The clouds broke out in rain unexpectedly, the gods crying in his stead. He opens his eyes and they are a shade of liquid onyx, seductively beautiful in the empty, haunted depths.

He climbs into a silver Volvo two very different girls admired at two different points, in two entirely different ways.

As he slides into the soft leather interior, a resilient part of his soul struggled to the surface. "I didn't choose her over you, Leah." He whispers into the night.

But no one hears him anyway, because she hasn't come, nor will she ever return. All he has is the rain, and his own, bittersweet memories.

He doesn't bother to lower the sunroof of the car as he whizzes through the night at 102 km/ph.

**A/N: **So, first things first.

To all of those who think that this chapter is just pointless Edward-bashing: you're probably right. I just needed to get all the angst off my system.

Second: I won't be updating frequently, seeing how I'm performing along with the rest of the school orchestra in a major event and therefore have practices four days a week.

Third: I've written the way Edward feels when he first starts talking to Leah, only as a different fic. It's on my profile, and is called Surrender my Soul. Feel free to check it out (and review, of course) (:

Fourth: PLEEASE REVIEW!!!!!!!!!!!


	12. The longago you and me part I

**A/N: **This chapter is dedicated to Rob Thomas, my rival in dreaming.  
_Truth:_ My OS crashed, and erased all my work with it.  
_Lie: _That's why I didn't update.

**Disclaimer: **I refuse to claim ownership of a book that gave birth to a sappy character like Bella Swan.

_**CHAPTER ELEVEN- The long-ago you and me part I**_

_And she only sleeps when it's raining__  
__And she screams and her voice is straining__  
__Says the rain's gonna wash away I believe in  
-3 am –Rob Thomas/Matchbox twenty_

**Day one**

"He's gone, you know that, right?"

I swiveled around on my stool reluctantly. "Well, you're certainly the last person I expected." I said coolly, smiling reassuringly at Dante, whose eyebrows were raised. "And since I'm in a generous mood, I'll let you think it's a pleasant surprise."

Bella Swan bit her rose-petal-like bottom lip in an expression that would have cast her as any clueless heroine in a chick-flick. "Edward." She said, at last, apparently deciding to ignore me. "He left. And he's not coming back."

I swirled my complimentary glass of champagne thoughtfully. "And you're telling me this, why? I already have enough reasons to party, as you can see. Maybe you could save it for a rainy day?"

Her eyes were growing colder, harder. "Save the crap, Leah. We know what went on with you and him." There was a hint of vulnerability in her quivering mouth, which she made no attempt to mask.

I smiled brightly. "Oh wow. Now that you mention it, I remember getting married and him whisking me away into the sunset."

"This isn't funny!" she burst out, and a few people turned to look at the drop-dead-gorgeous chick in the trailing midnight blue gown. Yeah, these vamps sure knew how to dress for the occasion. "Leah, I gave that guy up so you could be with him!"

I leaned back in my seat, trying to control my expression. "Actually, you ran away because you couldn't stand perfection."

"Maybe." She shrugged. "Maybe I just wanted to be with someone who didn't prefer to be so far away, so detached."

"Maybe you should have fought for him." I pointed out, still struggling to keep my outwardly calm aura.

"Maybe I would have lost anyway."

"_Maybe she's perfect." Her voice was wistful. _

_His wedding ring, which she had been examining, was reflected in his eyes when he replied, with a smile, "Maybe you are."_

"_I'm perfectly lonely." She corrected him. "Because nothing's as close as it used to be."_

"_There isn't a map, you know." His words were thoughtful, and the shadows cast by the clouds moved to illuminate his face. "And it won't come to your doorstep. You have to fight for it, even though it seems like all you do is lose, you have to keep fighting."_

**Day two**

"Ready to talk about the Unvisitation?"

Dante slumped on the chair opposite, his black hair flopping into his eyes. I gave him an innocent look.

"I have no idea what you're talking about."

He shook his head. "Come on, Lee. Who was that girl?"

"What girl?"

"The girl everyone except for you remembers talking to you yesterday."

"Oh." I pretended to remember. "Just a jealous wife."

"_Look beyond the sky, maybe you'll catch a glimpse of something that isn't so far away."_

_She laughed, her silver eyes sparkling. "Know what, buddy? It's 3 am. And I'm staying up with a vampire to talk about the weather report."_

"_Not just any vampire." His jaw was set. "A married one."_

**Day three**

_Leah, wake up._

No, I complained. No, I am not waking up.

_Come on, Leah. I'm serious. You have to wake up._

NO.

_Leah, WAKE UP!!!!!!!!!!_

Okay, I'm waking up, already, I grumbled. And since when didn't you know better than to interrupt my beauty sleep?

_Since this got serious._

What got serious?

_You'll see._

I swore mentally. Stupid voice in head. Stupid urge to obey said voice.

I fumbled around for my phone, which had made the annoying buzzing noise that initially woke me up. Sure enough, it had lighted up and the screen told me that I had one new message. I groaned, and checked what it was as I stumbled out of my messy bed.

Then I groaned even louder. "Dante!"

That son of a bitch. He woke me up by texting to tell me…………….nothing.

Jesus.

I began searching for his name in my phonebook, making a mental list of all the names I could call him. Just before I found his name (next to a photo of him in full-Dante-the-ladies'-man mode, blue eyes sparkling, black hair untidy, the works) I glanced at the time. 5:28 am.

I changed my mind. I would just go over and strangle him. Tell me, who wakes other people up _at 5:28 am_?

But it turned out I had to go over anyway, since he wasn't picking up his phone. If I hadn't been so royally pissed at him, I doubt I would have bothered.

_And if I hadn't been insisting that if you don't go, I'll complain your eardrums off._

Yeah, that too.

I began sneaking downstairs, keeping a wary ear out for the youngest Clearwater. It was harder to get past Seth than Mum, since he has the ultra-sensitive wolfy hearing. Trust me, I'm speaking from experience here. I've nearly been caught sneaking out of the house for inexplicable reasons (my stomach twisted uncomfortably at that) by my brother.

Anyway, the point is, I got out, and walked towards Dante's house, completely unaffected by the cold that had made the raindrops freeze into tear-like icicles. I glared at the pot plants he was neglecting due to sheer carelessness, and walked in.

Time and time again, I've told the bugger to lock his door, that though this place wasn't exactly the epitome of gang activity, it was still dangerous, but he never listened. Now, finally it seemed like he had paid the price.

My eyes widened in horror as I took in the upturned furniture, ripped books, and slashes on the wallpaper.

I knew the cause after inhaling just once.

Vampires.

**A/N: **Expect your inboxes flooded with moving pleadings to read this. *wink* God, I missed this story. The solution to the annoying mess I got myself into presented itself to me when I was doing an impersonation of a chipmunk with my best friend.

PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE REVIEW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


	13. The Colder Water

**A/N: **This is incredible. Y'all actually convinced me to quit sobbing into Kleenex/ watching Ronaldo's fantabulous goal in the North Korea vs. Portugal match and update.

**CHAPTER TWELVE- Colder Water**

_And so it is__  
__Just like you said it would be__  
__Life goes easy on me__  
__Most of the time__  
__And so it is__  
__The shorter story__  
__No love, no glory__  
__No hero in her skies_

_-Damien Rice-The Blower's Daughter_

Anger.

Anger, making my entire form vibrate, blurring the lines between human and wolf. Anger, ready to spring out of me and rip to shreds the reason I was awake at five thirty in the morning and feeling like the entire world had been snatched straight out of my hands. My fingers were curling and uncurling, and curling again, until I realized that silent tears were streaking across my face.

I abruptly stopped.

_I wish I could make you believe._

In what? A vampire who preferred to run rather than weather the storm?

The voice was silent.

I growled. "Answer me!"

More silence.

My knees hit the pavement, and I knew that for the first time in my life, I was truly broken.

*(*)*(*)*(*)*(*)*(*)*(*)

"Well, then, suppose I quit the drama queen thing and stood up?"

Great. Talking to myself. First sign of insanity.

I obeyed myself, however. Now what?

My hand was already reaching for my phone when I paused and wondered who to call.

The law? Har har. And tell them that vampires have kidnapped my friend, and I know this through the super-senses I have because I'm a shape shifter? I'm sorry, but I prefer my home over mental asylums.

Jacob? I needed to keep this strictly unofficial, since I wasn't sure what I was up against yet. Calling Jake was the rough equivalent of beginning the supernatural face-off of the year, only with a million times more angst than last time because last time, we didn't exactly have to factor in Jake's imprint.

Sam? After our last encounter, when I'd broken his nose?

Seth? Like hell I was going to drag my baby brother into this.

One of the boys? Yeah, since they formed the majority of my fan club.

It was then I realized that out of the two people in the world I'd take on a rescue mission, one was the person who needed the actual rescuing and the other had vanished off the face of the earth.

I was on my own.

Which was just as well, now that I think about it. After all, I wasn't absolutely sure Dante hadn't escape (doubtful, I know) I needed to be sure. This was a huge accusation to make against our 'allies', a stupendous breach of the treaty. I promised myself that if it was the worst, I would call Jake.

With that slightly dubious conclusion, I set off towards our friendly neighboring village.

*(*)*(*)*(*)*(*)*(*)*(*)*

The walk was surprisingly long, and by the time I'd reached the outskirts of Forks, my supply of food for thought was running low and I was intensely glad I'd enough sense to grab a change into warmer clothes earlier, even if I had run the risk of waking Seth. As of late, my brother was the hardest to out-maneuver, given the whole wolfy-hearing factor.

En route, I wondered whether I should take Edward's absence the Bella Swan way: you know, going glassy-eyed for months and then making a comeback with a smash hit that involved a perfectly harmless shape shifter's life ending up in tatters. It would certainly be a great source of entertainment. So much drama. So much blood.

What I was really doing was much less gory, I'm afraid. I'd merely made my peace with the fact that the guys I fell in love with had a tendency to have burning issues. I know, I know, I should have kicked up a first-class tantrum, cut my wrists, had sex with Dante, but you know what? Maybe I wasn't that stupid.

Ground-breaking stuff, that.

But I'm serious. Sure, I have a vicious, venomous temper, and hatred seems to have scorched away the milder aspects of my nature. But I know the limit when I see it. I've finally managed to face the fact that life was terrible.

So no, I'm not going to wear all-black and mourn my almost lover.

Once I thought about it, really, I had an awful lot going on for me. Considerate mother. Comfortable home. Brother with brain capacity of a permanently-concussed tapir, who cared for me anyway.

Missing best friend.

_Think first, shoot later._

*(*)*(*)*(*)*(*)*(*)*(*)

This is weird. I mean, I've been at the neighboring vamp household more times than I would have been proud of had not my Alpha been besotted with a half breed. And in none of those times has the house been so _loud_.

I mean, for most part, vampires are silent. They have their Creatures Of The Night reputation to uphold, you see. And as far as I knew, they were not fans of heavy metal. Excepting Edward, of course, who was M.I.A.

So what the hell was with the Queen of the Damned soundtrack?

Oh, is that irony I sense in the air?

I began creeping up towards the balcony of Esme and Carlisle's room. I froze, however, when I was passing the French windows of the living room.

_What the hell?_

I began panicking. Why the hell was Alice _unconscious?_

I shifted a little. Bella, Emmett and Carlisle, in the same state.

The room was a wreck. The wallpapers had been ripped and slashed, much like in Dante's place. The piano had been knocked clean out of its normal position, the sofa upturned, pieces of the floorboard ripped out and flung across the room.

I froze when my eyes came across a hideous splash of crimson.

My numbed mind made the connection painfully slowly. Vampires don't bleed.

_Dante, what kind of shit have you gotten yourself into?_

That was my last thought before a hand roughly closed over my mouth and yanked me from my frozen position.

*(*)*(*)*(*)*(*)*(*)*(*)

My eyes wandered incredulously from the pitch-black ones, livid and furious, to the cobalt blue ones, mischievous and amused.

"What are you _doing_ here?"

My eyebrows raised themselves at Edward's anger. "I may ask you the same question. And you, too." I turned to Dante.

The latter's eyes became grimmer. "Some crap's going down, Lee."

"Wow, and there I was, thinking you were planning a surprise party for me."

Edward made a noise of frustration. "Dante, take her home."

I rolled my eyes. "Hello? Buddy? My name's Leah, not Bella. And I see you've already met."

But neither was listening. Their eyes had wandered over my shoulder, and in a perfectly-choreographed movement, they both flew back and crashed against the greenhouse. The glass shattered in an explosion of sound and light.

"Hello, Leah."

I turned around slowly. Never in my life did I expect to hear that voice in a situation like this.

The untidy brown pigtails were unmistakable.

"Hayley?"

**A/N: **Muahahaha. Bet you didn't see that one coming. Me neither. PLEASE PLEASE REVIEW!


	14. The longago you and me part II

**A/N: Okay, so I'm not the most reliable updater ever. Who cares, this is almost drawing to a close! As an apology, I have an extra-long chapter for ya. Enjoy, my peeps. **

**CHAPTER THIRTEEN: The long-ago you and me Part II**

_Take all your so called problems  
Better put them in quotations_

_-John Mayer- Say_

"The _hell_?"

I felt eerily...normal. I mean, the internal pep talk, the whole steeling-my-nerves thing, mentally preparing to maul some vamps, and _this_ is what I get? A chick in a pink sweater with mother effing _pigtails_?

A huge, idiotic grin overcame me as I turned to Dante, whose dark hair was falling haphazardly into his eyes. "Dude." I giggled. "You were nailed by a little girl in braids."

Edward's eyes widened in sudden comprehension. "Haley... you mentioned her. She's daring Seth."

My brow furrowed. "Though he doesn't-"

"LEAH DUCK!"

I automatically went down on my knees at Dante's yell, then straightened to see their looks of absolute confusion. I turned towards the Lindsay Lohan wannabe slowly.

Her eyes were flashing. Her palms were outstretched, in a sort of obey-me gesture I personally found very irritating. "Wow." I said, conversationally. "Look at that. Looks like they don't teach you how to handle freakish shape shifters in Voodoo 101."

"What are you?" She exclaimed prettily, the hard edge of her fear and hatred making her voice weird for her teenage frame.

I took a step forward casually, and she retreated. Her hands went across the counter, searching for something. "You know, that's a good question. The answer would probably provide quality material for a daytime sitcom." I contemplated this, then shrugged. I took another step. "But please, don't let me hog the limelight all to myself. That would be very impolite, and I'd like you to know that that's not how Clearwaters are raised. Not that it's likely I won't get rid of you before you get the urge to get to know us better."

Though my tone was completely civil, she was scrabbling violently for whatever it was she was looking for. Picturesque china, gnomes and fairies tumbled to the ground, making expensive-sounding explosions. She seemed bent upon costing the Cullens a fortune, not that I'm complaining.

She finally found whatever it was that she was looking for, and I had a brief glimpse at a glassy-eyed, enormous porcelain doll before she chucked it at me.

I ducked again, and it crashed a few feet behind me. Whatever else she was, lil' Hales never had mastered the technique of Throwing Heavy Objects With the Intention of Causing Damage.

When she saw that her lame attempt at fracturing my skull had failed, Haley gave this little shriek and began to run away.

"Oh, no you don't." I growled. I was getting tired of her almost-badass act. Either you were Cate Blanchett, or you weren't. You can't just go halfway. Which was why I grabbed her unceremoniously by a pigtail and yanked. Hard.

She changed her mind real quick about the escape plan. She gave a little whimper of pain and struggled. I yanked harder, and she got the point and went still.

"Now." I said, still perfectly calm. "First things first. Who the hell are you?" She yelped as I twisted her hair around my fist. I turned her to face me and raised my eyebrows. Her face was set.

I clicked my tongue, and began tugging her back outside, where my best friend and non-friend were still pinned, immobile, to the wall. "As much as I would enjoy Plan B, I have a way that won't get blood all over my clothes." I smiled sweetly at her, and called, "Edward?"

Her look of terror settled into one of sheer stubbornness. "Do what you can, leech." She spat in his direction.

I bit back a grin. "Tough talk, coming from Alice in Wonderland."

"She's a sorceress." Edward's voice broke in, full of concentration. "She's...she's here for revenge."

"Revenge for what?" Dante and I demanded at the same time.

Edward opened his eyes. Honey-colored seconds before, they were now pitch black. His entire face was paler than usual, drawn and weary. He seemed physically weaker. I looked at Haley in confusion.

She was smirking.

If I wasn't angry before, I was _furious_ now. I shoved her towards the wall, allowing the sharpest edge of my anger to be taken out by the roughness of my actions. I noted with grim satisfaction that her silence was limited to coherent phrases. She was making little yelps all along the way.

The first time I rammed her head against the wall, I heard something break and blood poured profusely from her forehead.  
"You know," I said, as she burst into tears, "I really advice you not to piss me off. You're just giving me an excuse to revert to Plan B and enjoy myself." I leaned in to whisper, "Got that?"

She made a noise I interpreted as anger, assent, pain, and plain, old-fashioned hatred.

"Leah."

I blinked and got dragged out of my Uma Thurman moment by Edward's urgent tone.

"Leah," he said, softly. His eyes were still dark, but clouded with confusion. "Don't hurt her."

I gnashed my teeth. "And why would you say that?"

"This is all because of you!" Haley shrieked, unexpectedly. "If you weren't such a bitch, maybe I could've let the leeches go!"

I rounded on her. "_What_?"

"Seth was in LOVE with me!" She continued. "He loved me, and he went and imprinted on someone else!"

I felt my grip omn her hair loosen. "He...what?"

She sobbed loudly, and I felt my heart sink.

"Seth imprinted?" I repeated, stupidly.

She struggled, and I instinctively gripped her tighter. "Yeah." She said, morosely. "At first, I though okay, you would never let him be with her."

I had a hollow, ringing noise in my ears, like the sound of my world collapsing. I knew where she was going with this.

"But then," she hissed venomously, "you went and effing _gave him permission._"

I felt the memories cascade on me like an avalanche, chilling and overwhelming. Seth not eating- Seth looking ill- Dante and I sitting next to him- me telling him I loved him no matter what.

"I wanted him to be happy." I realized, my voice full of wonder. "I don't care what he does. If it takes an imprint for him to be happy, then so be it."

I hate to admit this, but my eyes met Edward's, and for a second, he looked besotted. He quickly wiped the expression away, and almost squirmed. I smiled softly, then turned my attention back to Haley.

"'Sides," my voice returned to the mildly mocking tone, "I'd never let my baby brother shack up with a lunatic."

*(*)*(*)*(*)*(*)*(*)

Her story was something out of a Harry Potter novel, and my eyebrows were raised throughout. When we found out that though she could torture anyone -bar me- through her mind but not actually kill them, I banged her head against enough surfaces to make her release all the leeches, even though I paused when we came to Bella. Then it was a simple matter of yanking her pigtails until she was spilling her life story.

Turned out, sorcerers and werewolves had some sort of unholy allegiance that vowed allegiance till the end of time. It was all very sketchy, but the gist of it was that the sorcerers were bound by blood to avenge the werewolves by destroying all vampires. And thus Haley dropped into town.

"They sent a fourteen-year-old to take down a coven of ancient bloodsuckers?" Dante echoes, incredulously. Then he shot the others a charming smile. "No offense."

"None taken." Carlisle assured.

"I'm seven hundred years old, jackass." Haley announced, proudly.

"That explains the loafers." Rosalie muttered, and I smirked to myself. My thoughts exactly.

"So how was Leah immune?" Esme asked, cautiously, as if afraid I'd come over and yank her hair off by the roots as well.

Her question was a stumper.

"It could be the fact that the shape shifters used to think they were werewolves." Edward said, quietly. My eyes snapped to him, only to find his fixed on me intensely. "When I first found out about Jacob, he said he was a werewolf. There seems to be no way of distinguishing shifters and werewolves physically. In all probability, when the treaty of yours was signed, shifters were in the group of werewolves."

I blinked. Not because of what he said, but... well, since I saw him again, I felt this magnetic pull towards him. It was weird, in any scale. I never thought that being in love actually led to repercussions like this. But somehow, whenever I met his eyes, I could hear my heart pounding too-loudly in my ears. Pathetic, I know.

"Eddie, you're a genius!" Dante yelled in my ear, pulling me out of my haze. "That explains it!"

"I never suspected that." Haley admitted grudgingly.

There was a silence.

"Um." I said, hesitantly. "Does anyone know what to do with her? You see, I can't hang on her hair forever."

"Of course." Carlisle leaped to his feet. "Haley, lead us to whoever sent you. I'm sure we can agree that we pose no danger to them."

Haley shook her head vehemently, a movement I stilled before she could pull my arm out of its socket. "Nuh-uh. They're _crazy_. Tell you what." I all but saw the light bulb go on over her head. "I'll go and tell then the real situation. I'm sure they won't dare to come back when they know that a wolf pack's nearby." She sneered at me and I cheerfully twisted her hair.

"Are you certain that's within the pack's interests?" Carlisle asked courteously. It took me a while to realize that he was addressing me.

"Um. I guess." Anything to protect Jake's precious vampire spawn. "You'd better ask, though. Sam kicks tantrums about the weirdest stuff." I figured that this affected all the wolves, no matter our differences. It was a big decision. "Wait a sec, I'll call Jake."

I began fishing my phone out of my jeans pocket when three things hit me at once.

One was that I'd left my phone at Dante's place.

Two, that an extremely familiar voice went, "Leah? What're _you_ doing _here_?"

Three, that in my preoccupation, my grip on Haley had loosened, and that her hand was wielding yet another of the heavy decorative hunks of porcelain in the house. She swung it towards me, and I went down.

*(*)*(*)*(*)*(*)*(*)

_She looks at the sky as her legs power onward, onward as she all but hears her world crumbling around her. Images swim before her eyes; a dark-haired boy letting tears hang on his eyelashes, him biting his lip as her heart broke. _

_The miles are eaten up as she outruns the misery. But the visions are relentless. It's like taking one step forward, only to take two steps back. They haunt her even as her tears are left behind. _

"Sam..." I thought I said. "Sam, it's okay, I

_She wishes it was different. That she was born into a normal neighborhood, a good girl who fell in love with a bad boy. She wishes that she lived in someone else's story, so that her pain wouldn't be hers, nor the decisions, nor the memories. _

"I forgive you, because I met this guy. I know you won't like him, Sam, but he's great, and I've fallen

_The surroundings are unfamiliar. She pauses, as she sees the tree. Even now, she remembers the warning. She's such a good little girl, she would never forget the rules. _

_It's that thought that makes her snarl. _

"for him, so don't you dare judge me because I think you owe me more than that. He's not perfect, but he'll

_The night is silent. She looks up. The stars overwhelm her, and she inhales sharply. For a second, the world is still; evil is cleansed; she is happy. _

_Then the spell snaps, and her existence freefalls into itself. _

"_What're you doing here?" He asks sharply._

"he'll try, and that'll be more than you ever did. He makes me dream, Sam, of a place that's so perfect, where no one tries to force reality on us, where we can just be happy. There's no pain there, Sam. Can you

_She bristles. "This is no man's land. I have a right to be here as much as you do, leech."_

_He raises his hand in a gesture of peace, and all she can read in his eyes is weariness. "Whatever. You just stay there, I'll stay here."_

"_I'll stay wherever I want!"_

"believe me? I'm sorry I didn't let you go a lot sooner, but I still remember. You said that you'd never leave me, but you did, and that's hard to take. But I'm alright now. I let go of the dreams. I have new ones. Ones of a place like I said, where he isn't sad, where I don't have to keep fighting and fighting even when all I do is lose."

_She closes her eyes. The images grow sharper, yet blur. _

"_I don't know who I am without you." She whispers into the night air. _

_Figures dancing in an empty street. The sharp scent of sandalwood, and Sam laughing and laughing._

I frowned. It was too confusing...

"_Better to have loved and lost..." he is watching her intently. She hisses. "Whoever said that was a jackass."_

_Her eyebrows raise themselves. "I'm fine." She says, defiantly, but surprise makes her words quiet, hardly above a whisper. _

"_I didn't ask."_

"Goodbye." I said.

I was shaken out of my daze as a voice growled, "you're not going anywhere."

Pain, blinding, engulfing pain. After the initial shock, it dissolves into a mindless chant that bounces around your head. Let me go, please, just let me go.

"Like hell I will." The same voice snarled and I realized that it's more of a choked sob than anything else.

More voices, all gruff and pitched intensely. I tried to fight the overwhelming sense of bliss, because that's what the voice wants me to do and I instinctively knew that I trusted this voice.

_He's like an angel, she muses as she watches him out of the corner of her eye. The starlight has caught his unusual hair and set it alight, like a halo of pain. _

"_There are so many." She blurts, without thinking. _

_He opens his eyes. They are like molten honey, warm with undisguised despair. "Yeah." He says, cautiously. "You don't notice, when the moon's out."  
She narrows her eyes, but it's half-hearted. _

_He bites his lower lip, a gesture that suddenly contrasts him to Sam. _

_She can feel her heart expanding, until her body seems filled with pain. She almost walks away, when he says, "Look." _

_She does. The starlight has drowned their town, and from here, you could see, the entire place. _

_It's so beautiful, it takes her breath away. _

Light. So much light, it hurt my eyes. I blinked.

"She's awake!" A voice crowed. It's boyish and innocent, and I dug around my memory for the name that went with the voice. Seth.

A pair of honey-gold eyes came within my range of vision, and I blinked again. My gaze focused, and I smiled.

"Hey, Edward. What's-"

That's when he kissed me.

*(*)*(*)*(*)*(*)*(*)

"Edward, do you mind backing off from my sister so that I can ask her what the _hell_ she's thinking?"

I smiled slightly against Edward's lips, and turned my head. He seemed undeterred, and kissed my cheekbone instead.

I saw Jake holding Haley at an awkward angle by the arm, looking flabbergasted. "Get her by the hair." I advised Jake, and Edward chuckled. "Much better grip."

"But-but-" he spluttered.

"How are you here?" I wondered whether that made sense. Probably not. It was hard to make sense when Edward's teeth were nipping at my skin gently. I felt a thrill go down my spine.

"Mum went crazy when you went AWOL." Seth said, matter-of-factly. He was taking the entire thing rather well, I thought. Considering that his murderous ex was a couple of feet away, not to mention the vampire making out with his sister. "And Dante's place was a mess, so Mum totally flipped and called Jake."

I turned to the almighty Alpha, who cringed. "And you dragged my brother to a deathtrap?" I inquired icily.

"He _attached_ himself to me!" Jake protested, his eyes wide with panic. "He wouldn't stay, we tried to make him!"

They waited, obviously expecting my tirade. I smiled. "'S okay, guys. I know what you're like."

They blinked, and Edward laughed a full, deep-throated laugh I'd never heard before. It warmed my heart, as cheesy as that sounds.

"You turned Leah mellow." Jake accused him dazedly.

I raised my eyebrows. "Let's not inflate his ego more that it already is."

Seth snorted as mock hurt flooded Edward's eyes. "Before the two of you capsize in a wave of passion," he shivered delicately, "someone tell me what Dante has to do with any of this."

Dante, upon hearing this, raised his dark head and grinned sheepishly. "I'm a, uh, journalist." He blurted. "I had to do a report on this town, and on the way, I bumped into some old lore. Guess I won't be completing it after all."

"That's it?" Alice demanded. "all this while I thought you were a dragon undercover or something. Jeez."

I rolled my eyes. "Your family is weird." I told Edward.

"You're beautiful."

Which I thought was irrelevant, though I wasn't complaining. Especially when he kissed me again.

A gasp from the stairway confirmed that this time, Bella definitely saw the entire thing.

**A/N: After that, if you don't review, expect me at your doorstep bearing a pickaxe. Kidding (sort of) **


	15. When all is said and done

**EPILOGUE- When all is said and done**

_I am hanging on every word you say  
And even if you don't want to speak tonight  
That's alright, alright with me  
'Cause I want nothing more than to sit  
Outside Heaven's door and listen to you breathing  
Is where I want to be _

_ -Lifehouse-Breathing_

The world is silent as the bronze-haired man watches the woman framed by the window, drenched in moonlight.

Maybe a long time ago, he thought this impossible. The perfect joy shooting across his veins, the sensation of his heart expanding until he is overwhelmed by the series of emotions rising in him.

He gets onto his feet, and walks towards her. He silently wraps his arms around her waist, and she fits her fingers into the spaces between his, where they clasp perfectly.

They watch the horizon silently.

"Remember how it began?"

He smirks. "You hit Jake with a sneaker."

She giggles uncharacteristically. "No, afterward. The stars. And I did _not_ hit Jake with shoes."

"The stars came afterward. I began falling for you when you just calmly took off your shoes, gave one to Seth, and hit Jake with the other." He chuckles.

"When was that?"

He remembers the vortex of passiveness Bella had been, constantly battling to let her personality to emerge only to realize that this _was_ who she was, that Bella would always be submissive, docile, his very own personal undead pet.

And then...Leah. So bruised, so _broken_, yet holding her head up like a soldier.

Leah waits, curiously. Her silver eyes catch the moonlight and he struggles to find words. She is, quite definitely, the most captivating sight he ever beheld.

"Doesn't matter." He murmurs, kissing her jugular softly. He feels her shiver, hears her catch her breath. "You're so beautiful."

"So are you," and they smile at the vehemence in her voice.

He captures her lips with his, and he feels her smile against her lips. "You're insatiable."

His fingers trail over her skin in feather-light caresses. "I've finally won over someone with infinite stamina. I think I can indulge myself."

"_Stamina_?" She echoes, pulling away slightly, only succumb with a moan as he trails kisses down her collarbone. "That's why you picked me?"

"Among other things." He whispers, fingering her boyish T-shirt. "The whole aggressive to the bitter end thing is quite attractive, too."

Her gaze returns to the slight smattering of stars. "I'm glad it turned out like this." She says, softly. "Glad, glad, glad."

He nods. "I love you."

She looks at their interlinked hands, and for the first time in a long time, she knows that they are going to be alright. "Love you too, Edward."

And thus was Edward Cullen's and Leah Clearwater's association.

**Author's note: There it is. Done. **

***sniffs***

**THANK YOU all who have stuck with this, through the excruciating months of inertia. But fear not. All is not lost. I'm starting a new Leah fic, a sort of triangle with Edward and Jake, and I want you to vote on who you want Leah to end up with, 'cause I haven't decided yet. **

**I promise to be a better updater. Longer chapters, lesser periods of waiting. **

**Feedback? **


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